CARDIFF deserves to be promoted for the vibrant capital city it is, instead of as just another tourist destination, an academic has said.

CARDIFF deserves to be promoted for the vibrant capital city it is, instead of as just another tourist destination, an academic has said.

Heather Skinner, a principal lecturer in marketing at the University of Glamorgan, has written a hard-hitting chapter in an international book on tourism in which she argues that Cardiff could be promoted better.

She writes: “Cardiff is a vibrant cosmopolitan capital city with many facilities and attractions, and an infrastructure that can support both general and business tourism to a very high standard.”

She argues for the branding of Cardiff to reflect the complexity of the dynamic city she was born and brought up in, writing: “Growing up proud to be Welsh, I was amazed to find that for many non-British people I met while abroad on holiday during the 1970s and 1980s, Wales had no point of reference until its neighbour England was mentioned.

“At school, I took part in St David’s Day celebrations for our national patron saint, wearing a traditional woollen shawl and tall black hat, I sang songs in the old language and recited penillion verse at Eisteddfodau.

“However, to me being Welsh was never just about speaking the language. Being Welsh also encompassed a feeling of belonging to my own nation, with its own capital city, its own unique identity and having a nationality that was distinct from others in the UK – a nationality which distinguished me as ‘Welsh’ rather than ‘British’.”

Ms Skinner adds: “My Welsh identity is also inextricably linked in some way to my identity as a capital city dweller – a dweller of a cosmopolitan, multicultural and ethnically diverse capital, whose historic architecture is now flanked by new shops, offices and leisure facilities.

“My city has both a gothic-style castle and a Victorian prison at the heart of the city centre, along with an Edwardian civic centre, and a modern and growing retail development that will offer one of the largest shopping centres in the UK.

“My Cardiff is able to retain its identity as a centre of rich cultural heritage, while at the same time being able to respond to contemporary business, leisure and social needs.”

Ms Skinner points out that Cardiff has some of the country’s most popular attractions. She writes: “Two ... appear in the list of the top 10 paid attractions in Wales – Cardiff Castle (third) and Techniquest Science Museum (eighth).

“Five of Cardiff’s visitor attractions also appear in the list of the top 10 free attractions in Wales – Wales Millennium Centre (first), St Fagans National History Museum (second), National Museum (third), National Assembly debating chamber (eighth) and Cardiff Bay Visitor Centre (ninth). Indeed, the Wales Millennium Centre and National History Museum are among the most popular destinations in Wales, attracting nearly 1.5 million visitors between them.”

Heather Skinner’s chapter appears in City Tourism: National Capital Perspectives, edited by R Maitland, University of Westminster and B Ritchie, University of Queensland (CABI Publishing, £75)

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